Forget the Cleopatra of myth and movies. Katherine Fenton narrates this audiobook focusing on Cleopatra's considerable abilities as a ruler, rather than her tragic death and purported skill as a seducer. Sources include the writings of ancient historians, including Plutarch. Fenton communicates in a tone of educated authority when enlightening the listener with factual information gleaned from the remains of antiquity. She is equally adept at conveying the author's obvious disdain for the way popular culture has portrayed Cleopatra in film and other media. She is particularly scornful of the 1963 film CLEOPATRA, starring Elizabeth Taylor. In this audiobook listeners will hear of Cleopatra's famed love affairs but will also see her as a skilled politician, leader, and city planner.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2022
Duration: 6 hrs, 15 mins
Publisher: Yale Press Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Newsom sets the record straight in this above average political memoir.
Newsom’s friendly, solicitous narration of his memoir is especially impressive considering that he suffers from dyslexia, a condition that he wasn’t diagnosed with until he was in the fifth grade. Newsom uses his memoir to clarify and examine his life and to preemptively respond to critics about the myths and faux pas connected with his past, including his connection to the Getty family, his four-year marriage to Kimberly Guilfoyle, and, most revealing, the fractured patrician and plebian childhood he spent with his divorced parents. His father was a judge and a friend of Gordon Getty, and his mother worked three jobs to keep Gavin and his sister fed and clothed. The memoir makes for an engaging listen, with Newsom’s rise to governor taking a back seat to his surprising self-examination.
Newsom sets the record straight in this above average political memoir.Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2026
Duration: 7 hrs, 57 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217070619
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Review Posted Online: March 25, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2026
Brisk, fluent, pleasing to the ear, Emma Gregory's narration does justice to a fine historian and her landmark biography of one of Britain's most misunderstood rulers. On the death of Elizabeth I in 1603, Scotland's James VI became England's James I, first in the Stuart line. James was one of Britain's most intelligent and energetic rulers, and one the most complex. Today he is accepted for the inclinations that have marginalized him for centuries and in this fine narrative is properly assessed for the singular place he holds in Britain's history. The narrative is organized topically, rather than strictly chronologically, and requires a high level of vocal skill to deliver clearly and effectively. This finely nuanced biography has the gifted, insightful narrator it deserves.
Pub Date: Nov. 11, 2025
Duration: 18 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9798318527753
Publisher: Tantor Media
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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